


LEMONS

by riveatstoes



Category: South Park
Genre: Bullies, Highschool AU, In which Tweek is able to protect himself, Lemons, Lemons - Brye, M/M, Songfic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-16
Updated: 2020-07-16
Packaged: 2021-03-05 04:34:55
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,199
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25298461
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/riveatstoes/pseuds/riveatstoes
Summary: With high school came a wave of new kids, two of which weren’t very kind about the whole thing going on between Tweek and Craig. Unfortunately for them, it actually turns out that Tweek isn’t as weak as they thought he was.
Relationships: Craig Tucker/Tweek Tweak
Comments: 2
Kudos: 55





	LEMONS

**Author's Note:**

> i’ve seen an unsettling amount of fanfictions where tweek is being bullied and craig has to come to the rescue. they don’t stay true to canon and i just wanted to make one that would more accurately portray his character!
> 
> it’s in first person through tweek’s eyes!

_There’s a billion people on this planet  
that you could bother, but for some  
reason, you chose me. _

High school hit everyone from South Park’s famous “Fourth Grade” class like a brick. A bunch of kids from surrounding areas moved in and joined our class, and to put it simply, some of them were assholes. 

Just an example of them were Aaron and Archer Frayer, the twins who had just about the same amount of shit-for-brains. They were pretty chill until junior year, when they heard about the only gay couple in the school - us.

Craig and I have experienced our fair share of criticism from people who couldn’t handle that we are happy in a different way than them, but Aaron and Archer took it to another level. They found the ‘weak’ spot.

_I wish I could give you the attention  
that you ordered, but I just don’t have  
the energy. _

The boys payed a scary amount of attention to us, taking in everything. They noticed that, of them, the ‘weakest’ was me. I freaked out at the slightest things that I thought would harm me in some way, and I was, and still am, constantly screaming.

So that’s how they attacked.

It was constant harassment. They would follow me around closely in the halls, ‘accidentally’ bump into me, make fun of me openly whenever I looked stressed about anything, ruin my clothes by spilling varying shit on them, things like that.

And whenever I’d confront them about it, they’d just say ‘you brought this on yourself,’ as if that meant anything. I didn’t know what he had done wrong. It didn’t even cross my mind that they didn’t like that I had a boyfriend instead of a girlfriend.

Naturally, Craig was concerned about this. He only knew about what had been going on because I had to constantly go to the office to ask for a change of clothes, use the restroom or go to the nurse to prevent me from having anxiety attacks, or even skip class and stay in the counselor’s office.

_And maybe I’m the one who’s being  
overdramatic, but I don’t think so. _

It didn’t get too physical, though, so there wasn’t really a huge issue in my mind. I didn’t care. What reasons did I have to care? A couple of guys were being jerks. So what? That’s pretty below-average for South Park.

At least, it didn’t get physical until the Frayer twins realized that this wasn’t bothering me - aside from a few almost-anxiety-attacks and clothing changes. So they moved on.

I went home with some new bruises and cuts every few days. Still, I was unbothered. The only person who cared, of course, was Craig. But even then he knew that it wasn’t an issue; eventually I would crack and make them wish they were never born.

He’d learned not to fight my battles for me. I was capable, and that has been proven on multiple occasions.

“Hey, Tweekers,” Archer said to ‘e one day while he was at his locker.

“Don’t call me that.”

_I do know for a fact, though, that  
you’re a definite coward and I think it  
might be time for you to go. _

“Why not?” Asked Aaron, who looked considerably offended when I began to walk away.

“Because you don’t get to call me that. Because I told you not to.”

“But Tucker gets to call you that!” He whined, “Oh wait. That’s because you’re his little piece of ass...”

I looked back at him as if I was going to commit a double homicide right then and there. I was actually considering it.

“...istant.” Aaron finished innocently.

I narrowed my eyes, “Fuck off.”

_You’re a sour little boy with a fragile  
masculinity. You saw me as your toy,  
and now that I’m not, you abuse me. _

“And if we don’t?” For someone shorter than an Underpants Gnome, Archer was extremely cocky.

I just shrugged and continued to walk out of the school, before one of the boys grabbed my backpack strap and whipped me around.

“We don’t like your attitude.”

I was at a loss for a comeback, so I just went with the first thing to come to my mind, “Well...I don’t like your face.” Smooth, Tweak, smooth.

“Excuse me?”

I didn’t get to have a turn to speak this time before Aaron punched me in the face, causing, at least, one more bruise and a nosebleed. My heartbeat sped up, my mind raced and I was no-I shaking, but I didn’t overreact. He was able to be calm now, thanks to Craig.

“You gonna keep back-talking?”

“I don’t know...” I replied softly, before kneeing Archer in the unmentionables and elbowing Aaron in the stomach. Then, I walked away, clearly able to still hear them yelling at me from across the hall. 

I grunted and continued out of the school, knowing that I was to meet my friends so that they could carpool home in Clyde’s lame minivan.

_You’re a sour little boy, absolutely no  
fun. You saw me as your toy, now that  
I am not, you throw a tantrum. _

“What happened to your nose?” Clyde asked when I got to the meeting spot, the keys held firmly in his palm.

“Don’t worry about it.”

We piled into the car - Clyde driving, Token in the passenger seat, Jimmy and his crutches in the middle row, and Craig and I in the very back. That was our usual order.

“Here, let me clean that up for you,” Craig offered, pulling a tissue out of his backpack. He had an ‘emergency’ minipack in one of the many pockets; it was only in there because his mom insisted he and Tricia had one.

“Thank you,” I said calmly as Craig wiped away the - now dry - blood from around my nose and mouth.

He gently placed his hand on my knee, “I know you didn’t want to tell Clyde, but would you wanna tell me what happened?”

I nodded, and told them quietly what had happened, “The Frayer boys cornered me when I was leaving. They got one punch in before I retaliated. They’re probably in more pain then me.”

Craig smiled a tiny bit, “That’s my boy.”

It wasn’t long before Clyde pulled up to Craig’s house, where we agreed we would spend the afternoon - and maybe the night if I felt like it.

Seeing that I, someone who was basically her second brother at this point, was at the house again, Tricia stayed by the door and listened to the conversation we were having. And when she had heard enough, she barged in.

“You know what I say?” She asked rather loudly, spooking us a bit. Only a bit, though, _“When life gives you lemons, you don’t make lemonade; you use them to make bitches cry.”_

“What do you mean by that this time?” I asked, although I knew exactly what Tricia was implying. She said this all the time, and it usually meant the same thing.

She smirked, “I’m saying that _you take those lemons, no sugar at all, and you squirt ‘em right into their eyes._ It’s what they deserve. You know it.”

“Come on,” Craig interfered, “don’t advise him to get into a fight. They’re assholes, sure, but he’s gonna get detention if he starts shit.”

“Damn, I didn’t realize you were such a pussy now.”

He flipped her off, “I’m not a pussy. I just don’t think it’s the best option.”

I thought about it for a second, “No, no. I think it’s the only option. They’re not gonna stop unless they get a taste of their own medicine. They need to know that this bullshit isn’t okay.”

Craig sighed, “Fine. If that’s what you want to do, I’ll back you up. But don’t be shocked when the teachers come and split you up.”

“I’m counting on it.”

-

The next day, I went into school, fully prepared for 3:00 to come. I kept Tricia’s words in mind: _“When life gives you lemons, you don’t make lemonade; you use them to make bitches cry. You take those lemons, no sugar at all, and squirt ‘em right into their eyes.”_

Was I nervous? Of course I was; I was gonna pick a fight with two guys about .5x the size of me. But, as Craig always told me, I was fucking feral, and I wouldn’t let anyone kick me around the way those boys were doing.

2:59.

I stared at the clock. In around thirty seconds, I would be in the hallway. And in about two minutes, I would be kicking Frayer ass.

_“When life gives you lemons, you don’t make lemonade; you use them to make bitches cry. You take those lemons, no sugar at all, and squirt ‘em right into their eyes.”_

3:00.

_I’ve tried to remain patient with your  
stupid shenanigans, but you’ve given  
me no other choice. You tried to knock  
me over by acting like you’re above  
me and pretending that I don’t have a  
voice._

I walked to his locker and calmly put in the combination. When it was open, I slowly traded my notebooks and folders for my backpack and jacket. Once the door was shut, I saw their faces more clearly. 

They loomed over me like giants, even though they both only went up to my nose in height. But what they lacked in feet was made up for by their width. Jesus Christ.

Archer smirked, “Ready for Round Fifteen?” I just stared at him. I had to let them make the first move - so they did. Within seconds I was pinned against the locker and my things were on the floor.

“Any last words?” Aaron asked, acting as if he had won. However, after .5 seconds of silence, my foot was up to his chest and he was being pushed. It was as if I was let off my invisible leash.

_And I don’t wanna encourage your  
abusive behavior, but I just can’t let  
you win. I’m legitimately tired of being  
walked all over by these insecure  
babies who think that they’re men._

A crowd gathered, led by Cartman, of course, and they were either cheering for me or the Frayer boys. Things were looking up for me, but just as it seemed like I would win, I was hit with all four of their feet at the same time.

I flew back and hit my head on the lockers, causing my lunch to resurface. Then, the pain of the impact was sent throughout my body and I screamed, unable to control it.

“Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck...”

_You’re a sour little boy with a fragile  
masculinity. You saw me as your toy,  
and now that I’m not, you abuse me._

Finally, a teacher appeared, and the twins ran, not wanting to face consequences. The crowd surrounded me as I clutched my stomach, practically unable to breathe.

I ended up being okay enough to go home, but it didn’t change the fact that it hurt like shit.

“What made you think it would be okay to start a fight,” My mom asked once I was in the car. She was always going to pick me up that day, but now it was bitter. She saw me as less, no doubt.

“They started it. They finished it, too. I just wanted to defend myself.”

“What reason would they have to fight you? You sound ridiculous.”

“Craig...” I mumbled, definitely too quiet for my mother to hear.

She took her eyes off the road for a second, “What?”

“Nothing...”

“No, you said something. What did you say, hun?”

I tried to avoid the question, just looking out of the window. But Helena Tweak was a persistent woman, and she wouldn’t sit by while something was obviously bothering me.

“AGH - They’re bothering me because I’m dating Craig! That’s the only reason why. Are you satisfied? Now you know, I hope you’re happy.”

“What.”

I was sort of spooked by my mother’s tone. She has never sounded more serious, and it was frightening.

_You’re a sour little boy, absolutely no  
fun. You saw me as your toy, now that  
I am not, you throw a tantrum._

“When we get to the shop, we’re getting your father and going back to school. We’re gonna have to have a talk with the principal about this.”

“N-No, I don’t want you to - ARGH - go through any trouble for me, Mom.”

“If someone’s hurting you, I’m going to go through hell and back. I know we haven’t been the best parents, but your father and I want to be on your side now that everything’s out in the open. Now, what are those boys’ names?”

I pulled at the collar of my shirt, holding in a breath. Eventually, though, I let it out and told her the names of the Frayer boys.

When they arrived at the shop, I insisted on going in with her, but she told me it would only be a minute. She left me alone, and as it turned out, it would not be “just a minute” because they had to finish serving the last of the customers.

As I waited, I mostly just tried to sit and wait quietly. But with the car’s engine humming, the air conditioning blowing in my face, and the overall annoyance that came with constantly twitching no matter what I did, that didn’t last long.

About five minutes after my mother left the car, I started tugging at my hair. It was an old elementary school habit that I thought I’d gotten rid of, yet somehow, it resurfaced in high school. Whatever, I’ll get over it again. Maybe.

It was about fifteen minutes before my parents finally exited the shop and got in the car. Of course, the entire drive was full of me being questioned about what had led to the fight.

“What do you guys plan on doing, exactly?” I asked once we had pulled into the school’s parking lot.

“We’re just gonna have a talk, that’s all,” my father answered calmly. Not wanting to argue with my parents’ judgement, I decided it would probably be best to keep quiet and distract myself while they ‘talked.’

I was actually told to stay outside of the office, for reasons I was unsure of at first. But when I started to be able to hear what they were ‘saying’ all of a sudden, I understood.

Sighing, I pulled out my phone. I hadn’t had the time to check it after I left, so I was sure there was bound to be something. And indeed there was.

Messages from ‘The Boys’ (12)

‘The Boys’ was a groupchat made by Clyde for a bunch of the...well, boys in our grade. So that meant Stan’s Gang, ‘Craig and Those Guys,’ and a few other random ones like Scott Malkinson and Gregory - both of which hardly ever speak in it.

Cartman: What the fuck was that??

Clyde: What do u mean

Cartman: The fight dumbass!

Clyde: Ohhh...I dunno

Stan: i’m not really sure what  
happened either, it was kind of  
random tbh

Kyle: I really don’t care what caused  
it, I’m just concerned about how  
things ended up for all three of them.

Stan: tweek’s in this chat i think, if he  
is he never talks, so i’m sure you could  
probably just ask

Kyle: I wouldn’t want to seem  
overbearing. We don’t talk, it wouldn’t  
be my place.

Craig ✨: you’re damn right it’s not.

Cartman: Oh fuck, here we go.

Craig ✨: shut the fuck up, fatass.

Cartman: IM NOT FAT ASSHOLE

Stan: sure

I wanted to reply, I really did, just so they would know I was fine, but I didn’t get the chance, because my parents were storming out of the office within seconds, my mother pulling me out of the school by the arm.

“WHAT THE—”

“Listen to me, Tweek,” she said sternly, “Tomorrow when you walk in, I want you to not back down. If they pick on you, fight back. You know why I want you to do that?”

“W-Why?”

_“Because when life gives you lemons, you don’t make lemonade; you use them to make boys cry.”_

Holy shit, why is everyone saying almost the exact thing all the time? Why is this so common?

She went on, _“You take those lemons, no sugar at all, and you squirt them right into their eyes.”_

“Wh...”

“Just trust me on this one.”

“O-Okay.”

Before long, we were home. I was more than happy to run up to my room and lay down for a while, especially since it was almost five already.

Ping!

I checked my phone.

Message from ‘Craig ✨’ (1)

Craig ✨: hey babe are you okay?

Me: Yeah Im fine!!

Craig ✨: are you sure?

Me: Mhm

Craig ✨: okay. but if they ever bother  
you again, let me know if you need me  
to knock some sense into them. i will.

Me: I know you will but its seriously  
ok!! I have the situation handled!

Craig ✨: alright. i have to go eat  
dinner now but i’ll text you when i’m  
done. i love you.

Me: Love you too!!!

-

The next day at school, just as the day prior, my mother’s words ran through my mind: _“When life gives you lemonade, you don’t make lemonade; you use them to make boys cry. You take those lemons, no sugar at all, and squirt ‘em right into their eyes.”_

I could do this, right? The way I thought of it, all I had to do was ignore them and fight back when they fought me. Easy enough.

Lunch came all-too quickly, not as if that was a bad thing.

“There he is!” Clyde said excitedly, slinging his arm around my shoulders the second I got to the lunch line. I flinched at first but calmed myself quickly.

Without anyone needing to even ask him, Clyde went on talking, “I haven’t seen Craig since the car ride this morning, but I’m sure he’s almost here. Probably just got in trouble in Mrs. K’s class, you know how it is. ANYWAYS, what was yesterday about?”

“I, uh...I don’t know.”

“So you just felt like fighting the Frayer twins?” He seemed suspicious, but it wasn’t really any of his business what my motivations were. It wasn’t much of a secret that I didn’t have a good relationship with the boys, but no one - aside from Craig and my parents - knew why.

“Yeah, I guess.”

Clyde hesitated, but eventually gave into the answer, “Okay!” and then he went on to talk my, Token and Jimmy’s ears off for the entire time we were in the line.

It wasn’t until they were at their lunch table that I finally saw Craig entering the cafeteria. And once he laid eyes on his ‘friends,’ it was practically game over.

“‘Sup, F-Fucker,” Jimmy said with a smirk once Craig had sat down, “What took you so l-lo- what took you so long?”

“Shut up.”

“Aight.”

_L - E - M - O - N - S_

About five minutes passed before I became concerned, “Aren’t you gonna get something to eat?”

“I’m not hungry.”

“You said that yesterday, too. And the day before that. And, while I’m thinking of it, you haven’t eaten lunch all week. You better stop that.”

“My parents haven’t given me lunch money since I ran out on Friday. I’m don’t have enough to—”

“I’ll share.”

He almost looked shocked, as if he hadn’t expected that offer. Should’ve known better.

“What?”

“I’m serious. Take some of mine. I don’t care.”

“I can’t do that.”

“Take the fucking food, Tucker.”

“...Fine.”

With that, Craig grabbed one of the chicken nuggets from my tray and took a bite. Then he pretended to gag, “School food tastes like rubber, I swear.”

“Better than air, no?”

“Not really.”

_Sour little boy..._

The rest of lunch passed quickly, and soon, our group of five was heading out the cafeteria door to go to class. And as they did so, I could pick up on Clyde saying something about how ‘gay’ Craig and I were, but I didn’t really mind. It’s not exactly a false statement.

“Why exactly were you so late?” I asked out of pure curiosity. Craig just dodged the question at first, but eventually answered.

“Aaron and Archer stopped me in the hallway. They were spewing all sorts of bullshit about you, but I didn’t really give them much attention - they don’t deserve that. That lasted a while before a teacher passed by and told us to get to lunch.”

“...Oh.”

“I wouldn’t worry too much about them, Babe. They may talk a big game, but they’re just cowards. Always will be. You could rip them to shreds if you needed to.”

“Yeah...”

“Anyways, we should probably hurry and get our stuff. I bet we only have, like two minutes before class starts.”

“Yeah, right.”

_L - E - M - O - N - S  
L - E - M . . ._

The next two classes, the last of the day, were the most underwhelming. I shared none of them with anyone from my friend group - the closest thing I got was my english class, which I shared with Kenny and Stan, but I hardly considered them friends.

But then, of course, you had to take in consideration the fact that there was the other class, the one I shared with both of the twins. They basically spent the entire time glaring at me, except on the rare occasion that they would get asked questions.

That class could not go by quickly enough.

Surprisingly enough, I wasn’t bothered the entire time I was getting my things together at my locker. I wasn’t bothered as I walked outside to meet Craig and our friends.

I was, however, bothered immensely when I made it to the meeting spot and saw the twins talking to them. In terms of expressions, Craig and Clyde looked like they were going to commit double homicide, Token looked as though he wanted to step in but wanted to see where this went, and Jimmy looked slightly amused, slightly annoyed.

Oh - and the boys’ expressions were as cocky as they’ve always been.

_Fragile masculinity..._

“I think you should just leave before this gets serious,” Token advised them, turning on his built-in “mom mode.” Unfortunately for us, though, they were not in the mood to listen.

“You can’t tell us what to do!” Aaron said in a growl. Token rolled his eyes and backed away, telling Clyde that he’d be waiting in the car. I couldn’t blame him, to be honest.

I walked up behind them in case anything was tried - I wanted Craig to have moral, mental and physical backup.

“Now, we don’t like to give ultimatums. But that just may be necessary this time,” Archer began, “So here’s the deal; you can either break up with Tweekers and not let our town be known for you fags, or you can live with the fact that you’re the reason he’ll be sent to the hospital.”

“You and your homophobia doesn’t scare me.”

“Pff - Homophobia? Haven’t you heard? It’s called having morals.”

_L - E - M - O - N - S_

I couldn’t tell what Craig’s expression was supposed to be. He looked almost angry, but that was covered up by his usual monotone.

“C’mon, guys,” Clyde said, trying to pacify the situation, “everyone else is fine with them, why can’t you be?”

“Because we don’t take kindly to their kind!” Aaron spat.

By this time, Jimmy had gotten into the car as well, probably to avoid getting into the conflict. I’m pretty sure that Clyde, Craig and I could win in a fight with the boys, but I didn’t want to even risk that. Right now, I kind of just wanted to deescalate this and get out safely.

_L - E - M - O - N - S_

I needed to act quick. So, I signaled Clyde to get in the car and start it. He nodded as discretely as someone like him could and jumped in. Once it was started, I speed-walked over to Craig to avoid being grabbed and took his hand, “You ready to go?”

“Yeah.”

And with that, we jumped into Clyde’s car and climbed to the back. I was almost certain that the twins had muttered something under their breaths as we left, and that left me to wonder: why didn’t they try anything while we were getting in?

But I didn’t really worry about it. Tomorrow, who knows? Maybe that’s the day they’ll give up. Or the day they’ll finally beat me up hard enough to send me to the hospital - which is highly unlikely. If they did, there’s no doubt in my mind that they would be right behind me. It wouldn’t be the first time I got in a fight and the both of us got sent there.

_L - E - M - O - N - S_

Well...at least that time I ended up with the other party as my boyfriend. The hospital was basically just a date before we were even dating.

I’m just glad that it was over for now.

_Squirt ‘em right into our eyes._

**Author's Note:**

> i have some plans for a bonus chapter that shows them right after school so if that’s something you’d want then i’d be glad to supply it! i only didn’t add it in this part because i ran out of song lyrics and didn’t want it to be too long.


End file.
